The Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory proposes to give four courses as part of its postgraduate training program in Molecular Genetics. These courses, to be held in 1997 - 2001 include Molecular Embryology of the Mouse, Eukaryotic Gene Expression, Yeast Genetics and Protein Purification and Characterization. These are short, intensive three week courses (except for Protein Purification and Characterization which is two weeks) which prepare the student to enter directly into research that makes use of advanced and/or specialized techniques and concepts in molecular genetics that can be applied to studies of gwoth and regulation of normal eukaryotic cells and their oncogenic counterparts. Each course has a different emphasis and serves a different need. The course on Molecular Embryology of the Mouse trains scientists who wish to extend studies of development as well as the creation and analysis of transgenic organisms. The Yeast Genetics Course seeks to provide scientific expertise in the powerful genetic analyses that are possible using yeast. The course Eukaryotic Gene Expression aims to teach students both in vitro and in vivo methods for analyzing gene expression, DNA-protein interactions and mutagenesis procedures for cloned genes. The course in Protein Purification and Characterization seeks to train students in the theory and practice of methods of protein purification and characterization. The faculty are chose on the basis of their contributions to and knowledge of the field covered in each course. The faculty invite lecturerers who give up-to-the-minute reports on current research. The lecturers have all made significant contributions to their fields, so that direct contact with them is a valuable experience, especially for the younger students. The trainees range from graduate students to senior investigators. They are chosen by the course faculty from a large number of applicants. Because of the short duration of the courses, senior, as well as junior individuals can attend and receive a short, intense period of training in an environment remote from other demands on their time and attention. The courses provide an unusual opportunity for scientists to retrain in another specialty or to apply the work of a new field to their own research interests.